Exemplars: kindly loaned by students from 2011.Please note: Always refer to the assessment schedule for final guidance in writing assessments.

Nature vs. Nurture: Is a criminal born or made? Viewpoint one: Nature “That our genetic makeup and biology have a very important influence on shaping of CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR” People have strived for a long time in the hope of finding a cause for criminal behaviour in the hopes of “If we can find a cause, we can find a cure”. This started a long road of research into criminality and has left these researchers with two viable explanations for these behaviours. One of these is the theory of nature. Researchers have discovered a strong correlation between criminal behaviour and family members. This is well shown through twin studies. These studies are based on either identical twins (monozygotic) or fraternal twins (dizygotic). The Aim of twin studies is to see the chances of a certain trait being inheritable or not. They would register the children who were adopted by separate non family members whose parents had the trait that the researchers were looking for. Years after the children’s records would be looked up (in this case criminal records) and if there is a higher correlation rate in the identical twins than the fraternal twins it can be theorised that a genetic influence is probable (Jones, 2005). When a study like this was carried out on over two hundred separated pairs of twins (fraternal and identical) there was found to be a 54% correlation with criminal tendencies being inheritable (Joseph, 2001). Other studies discover that the rates of criminality were exactly the same. This leads to the conclusion that petty crimes are irrelevant to a person’s genetics. Therefore petty crime is not a hereditary trait. Many other twin comparison studies have been carried out but many other researchers question their validity as it’s hard to separate the nature and nurture sides of the subject’s behaviour. Without constant monitoring of the subjects life from birth how can you say he is aggressive because of his genes when it may have been aggressive caregivers that are to blame. Therefore it is deemed that twin studies can be used as supporting evidence but should not be used as the basis of an argument. Adoption studies are another form of investigating the influences on criminality. These types of study are aimed at discovering the link between a child and the biological parents (all having incarcerated female mothers). This control group were found to have higher rates of incarceration as adults that their counter parts who had parents with clear backgrounds. Other studies were done in multiple countries with similar results. The correlation was there but did not show a link with violent crime but instead with property crime. This means that an adopted child with a criminal parent is more likely to commit serious theft than commit a violent crime (Hollen, 1992). As the other studies coincide with this conclusion it appears that violent crime has little or no influence from a person’s genetics. However the results do show that antisocial behaviour is heavily influenced by genetics (Jones, 2005). We know that the genetics influence a person’s behaviour but recently they discovered why. The neurochemical called monoamine oxidase was found that in low concentrations its leads to impulsivity and aggression. This in turn can become criminal behaviour. Psychopaths are often the example used by researchers to show extreme criminal behaviour. This research often supports criminal tendencies as being genetic. The biological relatives of psychopaths have a 4-5 times more likely to become a psychopath themselves (Jones, 2005). Viewpoint two: Nurture “That our experiences have a very important influence on shaping of CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR” It has been shown that genes do affect personality traits and can influence behaviour but it is argued that the environmental factor plays a larger role. The environment in which a child is raised is crucial to the healthy development of the child (healthy development meaning an adult non- criminal life), if there are flaws in the environment the child will surely feel the consequences. Psychopathic criminals for instance usually commit severe and costly crimes. Although no one is 100% sure on what makes a psychopath but there are strange concurring features that run through most psychopaths that shed a little light on the condition. Studies show that 60% of psychopathic individuals had lost a parent (scott). It is theorised that the remaining parent may have deprived their child of love and nurturing because of this (on purpose or not). Even a child with a mother and father can become a psychopath however. If the child is in a situation where it is faced with inconsistent discipline nearly every day, the child may begin to hate the authority of the stern parent yet learn to manipulate the weaker parent, two trademark features of a psychopath. This does not limit psychopathy to children who have sporadic discipline, even with “good parenting” if the parents showing a public image of a happy family yet belittle he child in private this can again lead to resenting the parent and starting the child down the road to criminal behaviour (scott). For example the serial killer Henry Lee Lucas as a child was beaten by his mother with a broom handle for years and forced to watch his prostitute mother have sex with aggressive clients (Sharhea, 2007). It is theorised that watching this aggressive behaviour in turned taught him to be aggressive. This is a completely understandable situation but still does not excuse his crimes. Henry Lee Lucas was not the first to have severely abusive caregivers and he will not be the last. The impact of abusive childhood environments are too large to be ignore as studies show that a child who has been abused is 50% more likely to commit criminal acts as an adult (Jones, 2005). While it seems abuse is a large influence on criminal behaviour it is not the only factor (Fallon, 2009). Children diagnosed with ADHD are known to be affected by the diagnoses and will adopt antisocial behavioural patterns to avoid the pressure of social interactions and the possible harassment they would receive. Antisocial behaviour can be a close step away from criminal behaviour. All it would take is a smooth talking manipulator to turn the child/teenager down the road on criminality. Tracing it back the child’s hyperactive behaviour, studies have shown the hyperactivity is based on the family environment (Jones, 2005). Risk factors include family structure, parental figures, poverty and education. In situations where all these factors are negative influences on the child’s mental wellbeing there was found to be a strong correlation with criminal and aggressive behaviour. So it seems that the environment does have a heavy enough impact on children who were raised in a hypothetical family with lots of children so the parents would not have time to punish and monitor their child consistently. This indicates that the effect of a person’s environment is enough to merit further investigation into environmental factors and keep nurture as a possible explanation for criminal behaviour in teenage and adult life. Viewpoint three: Opinion based on research “How do our genes, our biology and our environment influences interact together to shape CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR?” Researchers have tried to explain criminal behaviour with studies based on someone’s environment and their genetics and although they can discover the chances of someone developing criminal tendencies they cannot give a guarantee. While genetics seems to have the most evidence to support its findings it does not create clear cut answers. As shown if you have criminal parents your inhibitions can be lowered mixed with extra aggression can lead to a criminal path (Joseph, 2001) but this does not mean you will be a criminal. Nature can be ignored when your nurture is applied (Sharhea, 2007). A person with criminal tendencies if raised by a caring family still has a high chance of growing up to be a well-adjusted, law abiding member of society. This leads to the theory of nurture being the most valid explanation. It explains and accounts for family influence as well as allowing leeway for outside influence (MikeFy82, 2009). Even the adopted child a honest priest will still have the chance of becoming a criminal if the situation calls for it. Bibliography Fallon, J. (Director). (2009). Jim Fallon investigates the mind of a killer [Motion Picture]. Hollen, C. (1992). Criminal behaviour- a psychological approach to explanation and prevention. London: The Falmer press. Jones, C. M. (2005). Genetic and Environmental Influences on Criminal Behavior. Retrieved 10 31, 2011, from personalityresearch: http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/jones.html Joseph, J. (2001). Is crime in the genes? A critical review of twin and adoption studies of criminality and antisocial behavior. The Journal of Mind and Behavior, 22, 179-218. MikeFy82. (2009). Criminal behaviour- overview. Retrieved october 28, 2011, from Hubpages: http://mikefy82.hubpages.com/hub/Criminal-Behaviour--Overview Pinker, S. (Director). (2007). Steven Pinker on the myth of violence [Motion Picture]. Sammons, A. (n.d.). Biological theories of offending. Retrieved october 28, 2011, from Psychlotron.co.uk: http://www.psychlotron.org.uk/newResources/criminological/A2_AQB_crim_biologicalTheories.pdf scott, S. l. (n.d.). What makes serial killers tick. Retrieved october 28, 2011, from TruTv: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/notorious/tick/psych_6.html Sharhea. (2007, december 18). Serial killers: nature vs. nurture. Retrieved october 28, 2011, from serendip: http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1598 Zimbardo, P. (Director). (2008). Phillip zimbardo shows how people become monsters.... or heroes [Motion Picture].

Nature v. NurtureCriminal Behaviour NatureOur genetic makeup and biology have a very important influence on shaping of criminal behaviour. A lot of researchers and scientists consider criminal behaviour to occur as a result of specific genetic coding or brain abnormalities that cause the individual to experience and exhibit anger and aggression that is countered with fines, therapy, jail and even the death sentence. The punishment of these individuals is often ineffective as they have no morals or empathy. These people are or display traits of psychopaths. ‘Psychopathy is a mental disorder characterized primarily by a lack of empathy and remorse, shallow emotions, egocentricity, and deceptiveness. Psychopaths are highly prone to antisocial behavior and abusive treatment of others, and are very disproportionately responsible for violent crime. Though lacking empathy and emotional depth, they often manage to pass themselves off as average individuals by feigning emotions and lying about their pasts.’ (Wikipedia, 2011) Some of the information gathered, strongly suggests that nature is solely responsible for criminal behaviour in individuals.Bad in the Brain (Ahuja, 2002) thinks that brain abnormalities and deformities alter the behaviour of the individual and can be the reasoning for criminal behaviour. Ahuja thinks that the way our genes interact can create abnormal traits in the brain of infants. The children will grow up with this abnormality and display the correlating criminal traits. Scientists can now conduct brain scans of convicted criminals and troubled children and see if they possess the brain abnormalities that determine if they are or are not psychopaths. The result of this scan can then be the deciding factor of life or death for criminals on death row, as being a psychopath is a mental illness and isn’t something you can chose to have or get rid of. If psychopathy is detected in brain scans of children they can then go through counselling and supervision to prevent possible crimes being committed by the non-empathetic individuals. (Ahuja, 2002)When Kids Go Bad Then enzyme Monoamine Oxidase A has been linked with aggression towards other humans and animals. (Gosline, 2008) When low levels of the enzyme MAO-A are present the amygdala is often more active which creates strong emotional reactions. Children with a low MAO-A enzyme often become criminals in their teenage years which will most probably carry on to the adult years. In tests of teenage boys who have low levels of MAO-A , when matching photographs of angry and fearful faces, and also when recalling negative memories, (Gosline, 2008) the boys with the lowest MAO-A enzyme levels showed both elevated levels of amygdala activity and lower activity in the prefrontal cortex that regulate the amygdala’s response to the stimuli.Inside the Mind of a Psychopath The paralimbic system has been correlated with attention deficiencies in psychopaths. Psychopaths respond to threatening images and sounds, as well as fearful facial expressions. In a study conducted by (Kiehl K. , 2009) brainwave scans of psychopaths who were listening to specific target sounds and non-target sounds produced unusual brainwave patterns when detecting target sounds. (Kiehl K. , 2009) Believes that the results may reflect structural or functional abnormalities of the temporal lobe. The results suggest that psychopathy may involve abnormalities of the paralimbic system, abnormalities that they are born with and cannot change. NurtureOur experiences have a very important influence on shaping of criminal behaviour. It is debated that our environment and the people we’re bought up with shape and influence who we are going to be in our teenage and adult lives. The abuse, love, and fear we experience in our early childhood is said to form who we are by the time we’re three years old. It is said that you can determine psychopathy in a child as early as three years old. Physical changes in our brain can change a person’s whole personality in mere moments. Inside the mind of a psychopath (Kiehl K. A., 2010) Kiehl gave an example of immediate personality change in the case of Phineas Gage, a train track layer who was the victim of a life altering accident. Gage had a metal rod impaled through his skull, penetrating his brain and exiting through his frontal lobe. Gage’s personality that was previously described as savvy, even tempered and responsible had changed to churlish, unpredictable and driven by this immediate passions. Gage had lost part of the brain called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (Kiehl K. A., 2010) located behind the eyes, this area is structurally similar to its neighbour the orbitofrontal cortex, which many scientists believe malfunctions in the mind of psychopaths. People who are damaged in this part of the brain often have trouble controlling their actions because they are so impulsive and they lash out in response to perceived affronts. Bad in the Brain (Ahuja, 2002) Ahuja and many other scientists/psychologists believe that the brain moulds to amplify your personality/traits. Eg: the brains of London taxi drivers have larger than average hippocampus’s as they need to remember all of the routes and locations their many clients wish to travel to (Ahuja, 2002). Ahuja believes the same principal is correct for criminal behaviours. If someone has been bought up in an environment where crime is the social norm, that is the way that they will act. If the individual participates in criminal activities enough, their brains will increase in the parts where crime seems like a good idea. Their hippocampus will remember how to break into cars, conceal weapons, and commit theft, without getting caught. The amygdala will know how to assess situations and react appropriately, the anger simulated in situations can fire the synapses to brutally assault someone who has offended the individual. These responses will become normal and each time a situation arises the individual will act the same way.When Kids Go Bad (Gosline, 2008) There are two distinct types of teenage criminals. One very common type takes up petty crime in adolescence, drawn by the glamorous allure of badass friends. This group tends to outgrow crime by their early 20’s. The other, more problematic, type starts showing signs of antisocial behaviour in kindergarten. These children have possible biological behavioural problems which if paired with the harsh environment of bad parenting, poverty or abuse, puts the children at high risk of becoming lifelong violent criminals. In many studies “lifelong” criminals were more than likely to have shown some kind of early-onset neurological impairment or difficult temperament early in life- as young as 3 years of age. These children tend to have low IQ, poor language skills and especially a diagnosis of ADHD (Gosline, 2008). Cognitive defects that predispose kids to violent crime may also be acquired in early life through poor nutrition, birth complications or low birth weight. Minor physical abnormalities such as low-seated ears or furrowed tongues – which may be connected to poor neural development or damage, may also be a sign. (Gosline, 2008) Section ThreeHow do our genes, our biology and our environment influences interact together to shape criminal behaviour. The resources and scientific information conclude that it is both nature and nurture that form the criminal personalities. (Gosline, 2008) Gosline says, Decades of twin and adoption studies have shown that antisocial behaviour and criminality tend to run in families. Even when the twins have been bought up with extremely different social environment they can both possess the same criminal personality traits. The biological traits that are passed between generation to generation can stay dormant or become active depending on the environmental cues. If a child is bought up in a peaceful, loving home and has lots of support and friends they can hide these genes for their whole lives. Others who are bought into unstable, abusive families that don’t support and encourage their children can cause the gene to become active in the child causing violent behaviour and can lead to a life of violent crime and incarceration. Birth complications can also effect the development of criminal behaviour (Gosline, 2008). A low IQ doesn’t have to mean the brain isn’t properly developed, it can lead on to a child not being able to complete tasks at school, which can correlate to being bullied. If a child is bullied then they can become depressed and in some cases that sadness is turned into anger and rage, which is a key factor in violent crimes. Psychopathy is often diagnosed by lack of empathy and remorse, shallow emotions, egocentricity, and deceptiveness. These traits can be genetic (malformation of the frontal lobes) or come from a life of parental abuse and neglect. Though lacking empathy and emotional depth, they often manage to pass themselves off as average individuals by feigning emotions and lying about their pasts (Wikipedia, 2011). If they had a neglectful childhood they try and submerge that deep in their mind, in cases they do believe that they didn’t have a bad life effecting childhood. They may have the genetic cues that were triggered by the violence and neglect. With every criminal it is both genetic instincts and environmental experiences that form the way the individuals live their lives, trying to be as happy as they can by defeating all of the people that stand in their way of having a happier life than they once had and proving to others that they may be different but they can still make something of themselves. They don’t care if they hurt others all they care about is the survival of the fittest, after all we are only human and all we’re trying to do is survive.Student N

The blind firing of a million pairs of neurons thinkin' hard but won't realize that Nurture is the cause of the P(ersonality)

(you must be growing up)

give me my money in stacks and test my IQ, its 3 figures real diggers fingers show up on my triggas (GUNS) Must see my Intellect increasing I seem smarter while my folks are 9 to 15 points dummer as kids now that flynn effect since 1930 bringing up your IQ and get your mind blown When 52 percent of you, is nurture did your mother smoke like a hoe Or get care from the get go? is you a friend or foe ? Epigenetics is what makes you know mum got me stressed out now Death Row I've been learning since I was a baby, I got to know mo' I scream and go 'Nurture' and I ain't stopping' till I'm matured path being teacher look what learning made visions of neurons growing synapses open fire buncha neural connections forming until I die ask me why I'm so incredibly wise The environment don’t lie Nuture Can change Me

[Chorus: George Clinton]

They’re using a million pairs of Neurons and they'll never realize Nature can't RAISE Me..

[Verse Two: 2Pac]

Been getten word that these square mother and fathers saying that genes control us but picture me gettin' raised My own mama was an influence fo’ sure my shit be developing out the enviro more negatively if it was a drug house my brain don’t know to survive drug riddled

It ain't nothing on the outside and there I was a young lover with smarts ain't had too tough a time livin’ with ma folks you know the rules b-r-a-i-n you got me heated my minds like a soft piece of clay shaping me night and day money and weed Epigenetics and early life development cause my brain ain’t in lock down witness me accelerating my intellectual capabilities the life of a healthy Player regular exercise at the gym as my guns increase smart like Mr Smith when my iq’s off the charts Nature Can't Raise Me

Nature Can't Raise Me

Nurture

“Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select – doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors.” – John B. Watson

The American Psychological Association's report "Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns" (1995) states that there is no doubt that normal child development requires a certain minimum level of responsible care. Here, environment is playing a role in what is believed to be fully genetic (intelligence) but it was found that severely deprived, neglectful, or abusive environments have highly negative effects on many aspects of children's intellect development.

Fitness

a clear link between good physical fitness and better results for the IQ test.

Flynn effect

There is debate about whether the rise in IQ scores also corresponds to a rise in intelligence, or a rise in skills related to taking IQ tests. Because children attend school longer now and have become much more familiar with the testing of school-related material

Improved nutrition is another possible explanation. Today's average adult from an industrialized nation is taller than a comparable adult of a century ago. That increase of stature, likely the result of general improvements of nutrition and health, has been at a rate of more than a centimeter per decade. Available data suggest that these gains have been accompanied by analogous increases of head size, and by an increase in the average size of the brain.

Smoking/drugs

nicotine and carbon monoxide work together to reduce your baby's supply of oxygen. Nicotine chokes off oxygen by narrowing blood vessels throughout your body, including the ones in the umbilical cord.

Nicotine has been shown experimentally to retard fetal brain growth in animals. The developing brain is particularly vulnerable to low levels of oxygen

Decreased mental performance scoring at age one year

Decreased academic performance scores in the school-age child

Reduced I.Q.

Epigentics

Stress is an example of how a fetus responds to stimuli in the womb and adapts physiologically. "When the mother is stressed, several biological changes occur, including elevation of stress hormones and increased likelihood of intrauterine infection," Dr. Wadhwa says. "The fetus builds itself permanently to deal with this kind of high-stress environment, and once it's born may be at greater risk for a whole bunch of stress-related pathologies.